Dollar Type Stores Can Help Stretch Your Dollars

If you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, you probably can bypass reading this article. However, if you are like most individuals and families who are closely tracking their dollars, dollar type stores can be helpful. A local consumer advisor in my area explained that shopping at dollar type stores can help cash strapped consumers stretch their dollars if you are open to buying off brand products at the, as he described it, discount, discount stores. I am not embarrassed or reticent to shop in these stores for staple items. I am not a staunch name brand loyalist; I prefer to follow the path to savings as long as product quality is not compromised.

Often you will find private brand labels on the grocery shelves at a lower price than prices paid in your local supermarket for equivalent name brand items. I have purchased name brand bakery mixes for much less than I would find at my local supermarket. These savings are doubled when my grandchildren and I are busily and happily baking an item for a sweet treat. For me, I do not need a name brand paper towel or napkin for everyday use to wipe up spills or clean my hands during a meal. Yes, when I have company I do opt to use the larger size name brand dinner napkin but for everyday use, my husband and I do not need the larger, more expensive dinner napkin. I have discovered that some name brand products such as dishwashing powder, liquid detergents and other varied products are less expensive in the dollar type stores. When I comparison shop I often find that prices are less for the same size of the private label line of the "dollar store" as the name brand product. The performance and quality of the private label product equaled the performance and quality of the name brand product in my opinion.

I appreciate that I have a dollar type store in close proximity from where I live. If I need a can of vegetables, a bottle of salad dressing or non-food items such as cleaning supplies, I can quickly drive to the dollar store and purchase the item without breaking the bank. A variety of products from groceries to health and beauty items and household items are available at most dollar type stores at reasonable prices. When the recent tornadoes struck some of the southern states, there was a call in our apartment complex to donate baby items for the victims. While shopping at a dollar type store I was able to purchase baby items at less cost than I would have paid at my local supermarket which allowed me to contribute to a worthy humanitarian project.

So, the moral of the story is for the "fill -in" or forgotten grocery items you may find that bargains abound in your local "dollar-type" store. Don't be too quick to dismiss the values you may find by shopping in these stores. A dollar not spent is a dollar that can be saved.